A Look At Plymouth Hall

To the Editor:

The Friends of Fairfield Hills continues its series of information articles on aspects of the selectmen’s master plan for Fairfield Hills.

Plymouth Hall: 66,135 square feet (State), 52,270 square feet (Becker and Becker), 24,000 square feet (HMA). Take your choice. Asbestos/lead abatement completed and a new roof installed in 1998 by the state. Parking spaces needed, 189 = $189,000 (FFH Advisory Report, 3/22/00). Amenities: 625-seat auditorium, bowling alley, snack bar, gym, small and large meeting rooms, and hothouse nearby.

Selectmen’s Plan: Preferred Reuse — Community Use; Sponsor/Investor Nonprofit/Town.

History: The cultural arts/recreation/community center triangle: The Parks and Recreation Department has long desired to have Plymouth Hall as a recreation/teen center. However, the HMA report on the corrosion of the support structure for the gym and its inadequate size has moved the thinking of some supporters to seek instead a new recreation building. The selectmen are now proposing a new recreation building, but have not designated the location of the building on the FFH campus.

At a public meeting sponsored by the Friends of FFH in October 2001, Jennifer Johnston came forward to propose a Cultural Arts Center and then volunteered to become chairperson for Cultural Arts for the Friends group. She made an inspired presentation to the FFH Master Plan Committee the next year. She envisioned Plymouth Hall as a center for the dramatic arts, dance, opera, fine arts, graphics arts, sculpturing, pottery, gourmet cooking, gardening, woodworking, etc leading to rental spaces for artisans who would offer classes for interested members of the community.

Opinion: In time, Newtown would gain a reputation as a center for the arts. If the concept of a performing arts academy blossomed, Plymouth Hall would be its hub. Plymouth Hall has the space and grounds for this venture if economic development in the form of business offices and parking does not consume too much of the campus. As funds become available, the triangle — community center, cultural arts center, and recreation center — would become a reality. All three buildings are essential to a community-oriented FFH. We must begin now to plan for a mature community.

The recent decision by the selectmen to appoint Jennifer Johnston and Brigette Sorensen to a newly created ad hoc Cultural Arts Committee only weeks before the August 12 town vote on the selectmen’s master plan for FFH appears designed to win votes for their master plan in its present form.

At this point the master plan is too ambiguous to support. It does not designate Plymouth Hall for a cultural arts center nor does it clearly state the reuse of all the buildings. Newtown residents need a clear plan for all of FFH. The master plan as written implies the core campus will become an office park. A No vote for the selectmen’s plan on August 12 will move our leaders to present a more definitive plan and perhaps embrace, instead, the goal of FFH as a municipal center.

Ruby K. Johnson

16 Chestnut Hill Road, Sandy Hook                              July 16, 2003